How the social media surgeries helped Pesky People

I’m prompted to write a longer blog about the importance of the Social Media Surgeries following the wonderful news that they had won The Big Society Award 2012. It was a huge surprise to be mentioned as an example of the impact No 10′s press release. In September 2009 I wrote my first Pesky People blog (The Future is not Orange) and had no idea that it would take me on a journey of a new career, skills, experiences and develop my expertise... 
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Job Centre Plus contravenes it’s own guidelines on Deaf access

I’ve been informed today that @deafplanet’s benefits were stopped despite believing they had been reinstated and it all stems from a DWP failure to supply her with the right contact details see previous post Being Deaf is no excuse if you can’t phone you will lose your benefits.  The Job Centre Plus office in Leeds has stopped her benefits including Job Seekers Allowance, Housing Benefit and Council tax Benefit. She doesn’t... 
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Being Deaf complaining to the NHS and your rights

Following being struck off by my dentist on Friday 10th February after my complaints of lack of Deaf access I’ve discovered the process of redress is weight heavily in favour of the dentist and the NHS also has no standard provision for deaf access in communicating with NHS services via email, skype or even text message. There is also no information on what to do if you are struck off. How to find another dentist/doctor surgery and how to resolve... 
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Struck off by dentist for being deaf

Today at lunchtime I had a dental appointment at Stirchley Dental Practice in Telford. Two fillings have fallen out  at the back of my main front teeth and they need fixing. I’m writing this blog in tears after being told verbally by the receptionist that I’d been stuck off by the practice by by one of the partner Nicolas Shackleton and he had refused me a new appointment saying I was now no longer a patient. I have no doubt that my... 
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Benefitscamp why it is important

Today #benefitscamp is taking place London hosted by the fab FutureGOV team. It is important it provides a way fordisabled and deaf people, web developers, the providers (DWP) with a way of working together to find digital solutions that improve the system.founders from Nominet and NESTA will be there too to back up the best ideas. Here’s my pennies worth: An online portal / in house portal that you can ask questions about benefits in an easy... 
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Is the job centre failing it’s Deaf clients?

If you read the post  about Janet (@deafplanet) a Deaf  woman who’s benefit was cut for not attending an interview due to inability to contact them by phone (she’s Deaf and has no outgoing phine line to phone by minicom to Text Direct service.)  For many d/Deaf people Text Direct is a lifeline offering text to speech operator who will relay the call. DWP routinely fail to offer  email or sms numbers as an alternative contact in letters... 
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Too high a price for a pint

David Colley wrote the following ‘jokey style’ email to a pub chain yesterday: After a rather depressing visit to a Wetherspoons pub, I tried to cheer myself up. We all need to remember the bright side of discrimination, after all. Don’t we? So here’s what I wrote to them…. “Hello, Today I visited The Five Swans in Newcastle upon Tyne (NE1 7PG) a Wetherspoons pub. I am a wheelchair user and had significant problems. The... 
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Being Deaf is no excuse – if you can’t phone you will lose your benefits

A friend an hour ago posted on facebook that her benefits had been stopped all because she couldn’t phone them to arrange an interview (she’s Deaf). She won’t receive her entitlement on Monday. Pesky People asked if we could do a short blog post to alert others to her situation to see if it could get her help and she agreed. Since when was it possible to stop anyone’s benefits all for the sake of a phone call? This is what... 
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East Coast Trains – a result

Pesky People is pleased to say that East Coast Trains have emailed us today to confirm they are updating their assisted travel booking system after our intervention on Tuesday. They are going to address complaints from David Colley who has found himself booked on diesel trains (which have doors too narrow for him to board) with his electric wheelchair. Unbelievably  it’s all down to 10mm of door space between the old train carriages and... 
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East Coast Rail – putting disabled people in danger yet again!

I’m on the East Coast rail service between London and Newcastle. I’m sitting in the designated space for wheelchair-users. And yet AGAIN the ‘Call For Aid’ button has been switched off by the conductor.   The excuse was the same as the previous times: “People keep pressing it”. I had to insist it was turned back on. What would have happened if I didn’t ask? If the conductor hadn’t gone past? (Like... 
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